Archived results July 2006

BATTLE MOUNTAIN RACEWAY, August 26, 2006

Again we were joined by several other crew members on Saturday and that made for a great amount of support at the track. Blake, Carly, and Chris joined mom, dad, Skip, Dan, Jerry, and Sheila meaning I had all bases covered at the track. Lined up outside row 3 for the heat race and boy was the track wet. A watering miscue had drenched the surface and it took forever for it to come in. At the green I decided to hang out at the back and feel out the track. Having flown off the top of turn 1 before I was a little anxious at the slick conditions. Wound up waiting things out and cruising around to a 3rd place finish. Well behind the leaders. The feature invert had us in the 8th starting spot with much drier conditions. At the green I used the outside cushion to move up a couple of spots then used an inside out move a few laps later to gain the third position. When the yellow waved for the first time I was in that third spot. At the green I was able to duck under 2nd and move into that spot going into turn 3. From there I was slowly able to run down the leader from a few car lengths back. Once I got to the leader I tried low. Showing him my line allowed him to change his so I went back to searching. Went high but couldn't get side by side enough to make it work. So I tried a few high entries with low exits but wasn't able to get inside enough to pull off a pass. A few restarts mixed in allowed me a few more attempts to get by but it just wasn't happening. On a restart with about 10 to go the leader began to put some distance on me and I wasn't sure I would have anything for him. Knowing I am throwing out 2nd place finishes, anything but a win is useless point wise. So I went to work, changed my line and again worked to the rear bumper of the leader with laps winding down. Able to get my LF tire to the passenger door on the leader wasn't enough. He would pull away off the turns. I was running close enough to the wall that people in the pits were stepping back each time I would go by. Nothing was working. One last ditch effort had me drive it in really deep, scary deep to turn 1. It stuck and I was door to door with the leader. Into 3 just as hard and I was into the lead. From there I was able to inch away and had just lapped a car when the white waved. Yellow. Green-White-Checker finish. Green. Yellow. Green. Yellow. Green. Yellow. Green. Yellow.......get the idea!? Finally the green stayed out and I stayed in front for those final two circuits for the feature win. Our 27th of the IMCA point season. How amazing is that?! What a testament to the hard work and dedication of my team. They are 2nd to none.

Thanks Mom, Dad, Blake, Jerry, Skip, Dan, Sheila, and Carly for their continued support, help and dedication. Couldn't do it without you.

WINNEMUCCA REGIONAL RACEWAY, August 25, 2006

Back to work this week so racing on these final Friday nights is going to be a little complicated. Thank goodness for a supportive boss and colleagues. Picked up Jerry on my way out of town at about 11:30am and hit the road for the 477 mile journey. All was well until around 5:05pm about 120 miles away when traffic was stopped due to an accident on the two lane highway connecting Battle Mountain and Austin. The road was scheduled to be closed for 2 hours. Needing just to start an event on Friday to clinch the championship I was crushed. Knowing I would never make it to the track. Low and behold, here comes someone on a motorcycle. It's my sponsor from Atlas Towing & Recovery, Brian. He says that since he's in charge of the clean up of the wreck, the road is technically his. So he motions us by the police block and up to the overturned tractor trailer blocking the entire two lane stretch. We assess the situation and decide I'm going to try and squeeze by on the side. Problem, I'm in my parents' PT Cruiser which is very low and the shoulder is at a 45 degree angle and very soft. Not to mention the lip on the road is about 6 inches tall. After some careful maneuvering and signals from Brian, I barely made it by and was back in business. WHEW! About 2 hours later I was in the pits at Winnemucca Regional Raceway and headed to the driver's meeting. Lined up outside row 2 for the heat and raced into 3rd at the green and then into 2nd using the outside. From there the leader checked out and I settled for 2nd. However, I started which clinched the 2006 Winnemucca Regional Raceway track championship for our team! WOO HOO! The invert for the feature found us in the 10th starting spot and the track was drying quite a bit. At the green the racing was tight and at times a little aggressive. Some leaning, shoving, among other things. I was mired in traffic for quite a while until some bump and grind racing by others opened the door and I drove through into the 5th spot. From there I was able to pick the cars off one at a time until passing for 2nd just after 1/2 way. Yellow. Back to third. However I was able to get a good run at the green and moved back into 2nd heading into turn 1. Had just shown the leader that I was inside when the yellow waved again. At the green heavy pressure to the leader trying low forcing him to hug the bottom. I thought he may open up the top and tried it briefly. Well, maybe not. Nosed to the inside and my RF tire rubbed his driver's door before he closed the door and went back into the lead. Was finally able to pull off the inside pass only to have the yellow negate the pass. Back to racing and the green waved while the yellow light stayed on. I had gotten a great jump and was door to door with the leader entering turn 1. I stayed in the gas and looked for the corner man's yellow exiting turn 2. He was not waving the flag so I continued racing. Good thing as coming out of 4 the yellow light went out and the green came on. From there I was able to keep it straight and true for our 8th feature win of the season at Winnemucca. We book ended the season and captured 8 of the 11 features there this season. An increibly awesome performance by the team. Thanks everyone! Thanks Brian for getting us to the track as well. Couldn't have done it without you.

Thanks Mom, Dad, Jerry, Brian, Skip, Sheila, and Dan for their help and support tonight.

SUMMIT RACEWAY, August 19, 2006

After the eventful morning washing cars (see front page) we headed to the hotel for a little bit of rest. At 4:00 we headed to the track and began preparations for the weekend's only race. The track was really, really wet and heavy which is something I'm not too fond of. Lined up inside row 3 for the 4th heat race. At the green I fell back to 4th and then fell back to 5th. I was going nowhere while the leaders were checked out by about 1/2 a lap. Struggling to find a line anywhere, I managed to pass one car and pressure for third but still wound up 4th. That 4th place finish wasn't very good as I missed the invert and a shot to start at least 8th on the grid. Instead I started in the 14th spot in the 20 car field. The track was still tacky in spots yet turns 1 and 2 were starting to slick over. This made set up for the feature tough. Do you set up for the dry in 1 & 2 or set up for the heavy in 3 & 4. On the first attempt to get things started, the pole sitter pushed high and right up the embankment coming out of turn 2. Restart. On the second start cars again bottled up coming out of turn 2, but I saw an opening in the middle and raced into it. Cars were everywhere, 2 & 3 wide bouncing off one another left and right. I steered clear and was up to 8th in 3 laps. From there it was stop and go racing as we would get a few laps in only to have a caution wave. The good news for us was that at each caution I was about 1 spot closer to the front than I was the caution before. By 1/2 way I had raced into the 3rd spot and was working hard trying to get into 2nd. To no avail. 2nd was working on the leader and was changing his line to try and get into the lead. This changing of lines made it tough for me to find a place to work on. Tried high, then low, then high, then low. As the laps wound down I was doing everything I could to get by. Finally I got a decent run off turn 4 and stuck it in side by side into turn 1. Almost even off turn 2, he used the high line's momentum to carry past me into turn 3. I went in really low and drove it in pretty deep. That coupled with a slight push in his car carried me into the 2nd spot as the 5 to go was displayed to us. Working high on the leader I ran up the embankment off turn 2 and almost ruined it for myself. The yellow waved just as I returned to the racing surface still in 2nd. The yellow was for the car I had just passed. On the restart I looked low and was side by side for the lead entering turn 1. Again the momentum of the high line sent me back to 2nd and a lap later the caution waved again. On this restart I tried the high line and was able to drive door to door with the leader into turn 1. He used the lower line to come off hard and slid in front of me. I crossed over and stuck it into turn 3 really hard on the bottom. Into the lead I went with 3 laps to go. The next lap the caution waved. On the restart the 2nd place car stuck his nose under for a peek but the car was good enough to hold on for those final 2 laps for the win. AWESOME!! What a way to end what turned out to be an incredible day. One of those days I'll never, ever forget.

Thanks Mom, Dad, Blake, Skip, Tracy, Dan, Sheila, Dan Jr, and everyone who helped out at the car wash. I wish I could list all the names but I'm sure I would leave someone out and I don't want to offend anyone. Their pictures are on the site.....so thank you to the people pictured here! :) PHOTOS

BATTLE MOUNTAIN RACEWAY, August 12, 2006

After a morning of relaxing we headed over to the track around 2:00 to watch the scheduled mud bogs. Got to see a few trucks head through the pit before having to head back to the hotel to get the truck and trailer. Headed to the track around 4:30 and did the usual between race greasing and fixing. Had some left side body damage to fix from Friday as well as pry out the header tube that was bent in. I'm really lucky the race ended when it did as the left rear tire was flat in the trailer from a cut in the side wall. WHEW, lucky to run 2nd. With everything fixed up I headed out for the heat race in the 5th starting spot. The track was not watered between races as it usually is so that left things pretty tricky. Raced into the 4th spot early and was in a great four car battle for the lead. Finally got inside of third place heading into turn 3 and set my sights on the top 2. Decided to try high on the lead duo but wasn't able to make it stick as the track was really tricky up high. Moved down a little bit and made the car stick good enough to jump by 2nd on the outside and get even with the leader. From there it was a tremendous battle for the lead as I tried and tried to squeak by on the outside. I could get even going in but would lose about 3 feet to the leader coming off the turns. We battled door to door for over 5 laps with less than an inch separating our doors. Finally coming off turn 4 for the white flag we touched wheel to wheel and I was able to jump ahead. Led the final lap for the exciting heat win. The track was watered before the feature which followed a lengthy Pro-Stock race. I had to pee so bad I could hardly stand it. But I headed onto the track thrilled to see that they were skipping the car by car introductions. Sorry sponsors, but nature was calling!! Anyway we worked in the water and were ready for the green. As the green waved, the car in the second row pushed and jammed our row up briefly allowing the inside group of cars to fly by. Mired back in traffic I was able to move up very slowly. By the time the first yellow waved I was up to the 5th spot. Once we got back to racing it was back to the high line to try and sneak by the remaining cars. The high line was better than in the heat race but still took some effort to get the car to come off the turn correctly. Moved into the 4th spot and came >< close to using a lapped car to vault into 2nd. Instead, the lapped car kept me at bay and I remained in 4th. Tried following the third place car in his pass of another car but was not able to pull it off. So I went to the high line and wasn't able to get by. Going into turn 1 I scared the crud out of myself as I stuck it in very hard high in what appeared to be marbles. It stuck! Into third I raced and one lap later the yellow waved. At the green I began to look for a way around the 2nd place car. Wasn't finding any openings high or low but eventually find a way by on the high side and was looking high on the leader when the door was shut on the front chute. I was trying to sneak by but didn't have any kind of position so I had to check up and settle back into 2nd. Had a great run on the outside when the yellow waved again. At the green I was wondering if I should protect the bottom for a lap or two or just go for the lead. I decided to go for the lead. Mistake. 3rd place got to my inside and our brief battle set me back about 4 car lengths from the leader. Once I was able to get back into my line I was able to pull up to the rear bumper of the leader who was now running just high enough to thwart my high line efforts. So I went to the bottom looking for an opening. On about the 20th lap I got a glimmer of an opening exiting turn 2 and jumped on it. Just squeezed by coming off turn 2 and leaped into the lead. From there I was able to keep it straight and in the lead. With 2 to go I approached a lapped car that was running my lower, adjusted line. Went high on the lapped car and we entered turn 3 side by side. Off 4 side by side right under the waving white flag. Just cleared the car going into turn 1 and from there it was free sailing to the checkered. WOO HOO! A personal best 24th win in a single season.

Thanks Mom, Dad, Blake, Carly, Kim, Dan & Sheila for their help and support this weekend. I appreciate all of your efforts each and every week.

WINNEMUCCA REGIONAL RACEWAY, August 11, 2006

We actually left a little early for Battle Mountain this week as Atlas Towing & Recovery was installing an AC unit on our trailer this week. COOL, no really, VERY COOL! Lined up outside row two for the 3rd heat race and at the green I jumped to the middle making it three wide going into turn 1. Ducked to the bottom and followed the leader into turn 3. Coming off turn 4 I was able to get inside and never looked back taking the heat win. Following the heat win I made my way over to the announcer stand and had a nice interview during the intermission. It was great as I met some really avid fans and posed for a few photos with them. Lined up 9th for the feature with several good cars in front of and behind me. The track had been watered during the intermission and was in pretty good shape. The top of the track was a little dusty but we took the green anyway. I'm always a little on the safe side early and it bit me here as I was 10th on the first yellow and 8th on the 2nd yellow. Mired in traffic I was beginning to wonder if I would even make the top 5 as I was struggling to find my way by the 6th and 7th place cars. Finally got my arse in gear and began the move forward. By 1/2 way I had moved into the top 4. A few laps after 1/2 way I was able to drive underneath the 3rd place car and set my sights on the lead duo who were having a heated battle for the lead. I wasn't able to do anything with the leaders so I began moving my entry and exits to the turns hoping to find some much needed traction. Unable to find much I was about to settle for third as the laps wound down. Then the leaders began to battle even more and 2nd was able to squeeze to the inside. I closed the gap to his bumper and was able to follow into 2nd as we exited turn 4. The other two cars made slight contact as the white waved and I actually took the lead going into turn 1. I got as close to the bottom as I could but it wasn't enough as the 2nd place car squeezed to the inside and took the lead back. I was only able to follow behind and finish in the runner up spot. It was the first win for the winner so it was great for him and good for me as well as I thought I would have a hard time making the top 5. I even picked up a point in the National standings as I was throwing out a 3rd place. The leaves me with 23 wins, 6 seconds, and 1 third. So hopefully today I can throw out that last third with a win.

Thanks Mom, Dad, Dan, Sheila, and Kim for their help as well as everyone at Atlas Towing & Recovery for their help and support.

SUMMIT RACEWAY, August 5, 2006

Started off our August schedule early Saturday morning as we headed off to Summit Raceway at 7:00am. Arrived at the hotel around 2:00 after taking our time getting there. Grabbed a bite to eat at the local fast food joint and headed off to the track around 4:30. With our recent struggles at the track I came with a new set up for this race and was anxious to try it out. The track has been heavy and fast for most of the races at Summit Raceway this year which has thrown me for a loop when it comes to set up. I prefer the slick. Anyway, I was anxious to get on the track but I would have to wait until last as I was lined up next to last in the last heat race. Believe it or not, the track was going slick!! WOW!! At the green I followed the berm around the inside trying to settle in. The car in front of me spun and I was able to drive around safely. Restart. On the next start I again followed the low line into the 4th spot coming out of turn 2 and then jumped up a groove. Got into 3rd before the next yellow waved. At the green I moved high and began pressuring for 2nd. The next lap I went to the outside and was side by side with 2nd place going into turn 1. The leader slid up to the extreme high groove so I ducked to the middle line and we were almost three wide exiting turn 2. Going into three I was in 2nd and a slip up by the leader allowed me to sneak by and into the lead. As the flags waved for 1/2 way the yellow soon followed. Every other car in the heat race besides myself was involved in an accident exiting turn 2. Big mess. I was fortunate to win the heat race with no damage, the same cannot be said for the rest. Good news, the car was VERY GOOD! WOO HOO! Lined up for the feature in the 9th spot, but moved to 8th when another car scratched. At the green I was able to work the outside slowly and had moved up to 4th when the yellow waved. They moved me back to 5th. At the green I worked right up to the 3rd spot only to be moved back to 5th again when the yellow waved. Had to be pretty patient working my way up through the pack as for some reason my brakes were upsetting the car terribly. I resorted to not using them a few laps into the race. Tough to do when on a dry slick surface. Finally worked into the 2nd spot and began to try catching the leader. Just as I caught him and worked low in turn 1, the yellow waved. On the restart I again went to work on the bottom and eventually came away with the lead coming off turn 2. Over the remaining laps I would extend my lead only to have it erased by caution flags. The car became increasingly difficult to get around the track without benefit of decent brakes so I was lucky to hold on. As 5 to go was displayed I was getting wore out trying to get the car around and stay in front. I was nervous. Yellow. It was determined that the race was going too long so the green-white-checker signal was given to the field. Two laps to hold on! At the green I went into turn 1, push! No real brakes to help get the car to set and it was becoming a handful. Nervous. I could hear the cars right at my rear bumper. Off 4 and white in the air. Through 1 and 2 well into three. Push! Oh no! Just when all faith was about to be lost, the car turned and I raced to the checkered. Monkey off our backs! Right on.

Thanks Mom, Dad, Blake, Carly, Skip, Tracy, Dan, Lil'Dan, and Kim for their help and support this weekend!

BATTLE MOUNTAIN RACEWAY, July 29, 2006

Up to Battle Mountain, NV. for just ONE race this weekend. Originally the schedule called for two races but it was changed without me taking notice. Guess I wreaked some havoc this week by putting a race on my site for both days. WHOOPS! Anyway, northern Nevada is rich with tradition when it comes to races as events like the Pete Waddell Memorial, Silver Cup, Gold Rush have been on track schedules for years. In Battle Mountain that is the case with the Maynard Bame Memorial race. Many of his family members are involved with cars at the track to this day and the race on this day was to commemorate his memory. I was fortunate enough last season to win this race, have my photo taken with the family, and take home the big trophy with all previous winner's names engraved on it. A couple of months ago I returned the trophy to the family so they could get my name engraved on it and ready it for race night.

Lined up outside row two for the heat race and was happy to see that the track wasn't watered at all between the heat races. A slick and exciting track awaited. At the green I fought on the outside but couldn't find a way around so I settled back in 4th on the bottom. Wasn't cutting it on the bottom as we all fought tooth and nail for space on the tight 1/4 mile. Slipped by one car to move into the 3rd spot and really wanted to get to the outside. The car in 2nd made a move on the leader on the outside going into turn 3 so I was stuck on the bottom. He slid high and as he came back down I split him and the leader to jump to the outside going into turn 1. Tip toed around the high side and was able to pull alongside the leader heading into turn 3. From there I would increase my lead and win the heat race. They watered the track before driver introductions and the track was in great shape when they gave us our parade laps. At the green I settled into the 7th spot waiting for the cars to settle into their respective grooves in front of me. Again I waited on the bottom and was able to drive by a couple of cars and into the 4th spot. The race went about 10 laps before the first caution. On this restart I had to wait for the two cars in front of me to settle their battle for 2nd and I followed the quicker car through in his line. Two laps later we encountered a lapped car and I chose the outside to get by while the other car chose low. I got the spot as his line was briefly blocked. Once in 2nd I used the outside groove to steadily cut into the lead which was almost a 1/2 lap. Just after the crossed flags I was on the bumper of the leader and pressuring on the outside. After a brief side by side duel I was able to nose in front on about lap 20. Some careful maneuvering in lapped traffic allowed me to increase my lead to a comfortable margin by the time the 5 to go signal was displayed. It was just after this that the yellow flag fever hit the track. Three straight yellows and a red later we were still on the track with 4 laps to run. After the red the track became incredibly slick. Not sure if it cooled off or what but WOW was it slippery. I tip toed around those last few laps with the engine noise of my competition rattling the sheet metal in my own car as I crossed the line in front. Was again fortunate enough to win the memorial trophy and have my photo taken with family members. Fun night!

Thanks Mom, Dad, Blake, Carly, Dan and Sheila for their help in the pits this weekend!! Way to go!

SUMMIT RACEWAY, July 22, 2006

At one time I had a streak of 16 out of 18 features won at Summit Raceway. Over the last three events my record is 0-3. Darn it!! Lined up 6th for the heat race and raced into 2nd using the outside on lap 1. Tried the leader high and low but he was running just high and just low enough to keep me from squeezing by. Just when I get a good run on the outside another car gets to his inside and we race three-wide down the back stretch and no one gives going into turn 3. WOAHHHH, I'm on the outside and the car is getting closer and closer to the wall. I'll admit I kind of flinched (sign of age) coming off turn 4 against the wall but I was by the former leader and behind a new leader. Was able to make a couple of runs at the new leader but settled for 2nd in the heat race. Again the 10 car invert was used and I wound up 9th in the field. I think the moon became full at the green as all heck broke loose. Cars everywhere. By lap 3 there was a red and 4 cars had already left the track on the hook. I had settled into 5th. Was 4th after the next yellow, then 3rd, and passed for 2nd going for the green on the next yellow. Raced inside the leader and didn't complete the pass. Fell back a couple of car lengths before it happened. Heading into turn 3 the car lost power and began to sputter. Checked the oil pressure and water temp and they were fine. Got in the gas coming off 4 and it was obvious something was amiss. Shut the car off and coasted off the track to the pits. We were done for the night. Darn it! The bad luck at Summit Raceway continues. This time we broke a rocker arm stud. Hopefully nothing else is wrong. We'll see. Congrats to Tim Mazour for his first feature win!! Right on Tim & Eddie.

Thanks, Mom, Dad, Blake, Skip, Carly, Kelly, Michael, Robert, and Mariah for their help in the pits on Saturday!

WINNEMUCCA REGIONAL RACEWAY, July 21, 2006

Boy is it hot out here, even where it's supposed to be cooler, it's HOT!! Over 100 degrees again as we head off to Winnemucca Regional Raceway for a rare back to back weekend of racing at the 1/4 mile. Lined up inside row 3 for the heat race. At the green the inside row moved forward and I jumped into the 4th spot. Up one spot to third on the next lap and into 2nd by 1/2 way. Caught up to the leader and made a move to the low side only to have him drive it in deeper to the next turn and take the lead back on the outside. Another inside move was just not enough and I fell back behind. Made one last ditch effort on the outside coming for the white but had to settle for second in the heat race. The 10 car invert found me lined up in the 10th spot for the feature. The track was watered and run in before the green and the traction was pretty decent. So decent that everyone was running in a huge pack two and three wide. At one time I found myself running three wide, me in the middle, behind two cars running side by side with another car behind me. Was 7th at the first caution and the track was beginning to slick over. Just what I had hoped for. Some of the cars faster early began to come back to me and I was able to move up steadily until I was into the 2nd spot. Just after getting into 2nd we received the crossed flags indicating lap 15 of 30. Made a couple of attempts low on the leader (same leader as in the heat race) but couldn't get far enough to take the spot heading into the turn. After several failed attempts the yellow waved. Knowing there wasn't much time I figured it was time to make a move. At the green I made a strong move inside but again was denied. Yellow. On the next restart I peeked inside the leader going into 1 but dropped back. Got a great run on off turn 2 and pulled even heading into turn 3 and was into the lead. It was then that the yellowflag-itis set it. Multiple cautions waved. The final one waving just as we were taking the white flag. That set up a green-white-checker finish. Kept the car straight and heading forward for those final two laps to pick up the win. Our first win in Winnemucca in over a month. It was nice to get back into Victory Lane there!!

Thanks to Dad & Skip for their help at the track. As well as thanks to Cheryl for the great cookies and brownies.....park by us ANYTIME! :)

BATTLE MOUNTAIN RACEWAY, July 15, 2006

Again our crew grew in numbers over night as Blake & Carly made the trek up north on Saturday morning. Arrived at the track around 4:00 and it was blazing hot. Everyone was wearing ice water soaked towels and trying to stay out of the direct sun. Completed the normal maintenance to the car and readied for the racing action. Lined up inside row 3 for the heat race and found some really good track conditions. The normal tricky and slick surface was pretty racy. I managed to get into third on the first lap, 2nd on the next lap and into the lead the following set of corners. The car was handling great and I was able to hold off 2nd by a small margin for the heat win. The invert for the feature placed me in the 8th position and again the track was in good shape. Slick, but you could still find some spots to get some grip. At the green I worked the outside since I was already there. It worked well and I got up to the 6th spot. Surprisingly the race went caution free for the first 1/2 of the race at least. During this time I was still working my way through the field and was having to use the lesser used outside line. Once in 6th I came up on a group that was running side by side for their spots. Tried sticking my nose in and making it three wide (me in the middle) coming off turn 2 but thought better of it. The outside car moved ahead slightly giving me an opening up high and I used it to get outside of 5th place. Coming off turn 2 the next lap the 4th place car pushed up and I shot between the two cars to take over the 4th spot. Another outside move going into 3 gained me the third spot and it was on to the lead duo who was almost a straightaway ahead of me. The leader's right rear began going flat and it was making his car loose. Not sure where to go I waited to see where 2nd would go and I would go opposite of that. 2nd place went high so I went low thinking the car with the flat would need to get to the outside to leave the track. Didn't work. Had to jump to the outside and just barely made it between that car and the wall to move by into the 2nd position. Was working the inside of the leader and managed at one time to get almost door to door, however he pulled back in front. This allowed him to change his line which took away the inside I was working on. Yellow. At the green we went back to action and the leader used the inside line to begin to put some distance between himself and me. Began searching for another line and found one a little higher. This allowed me to creep up on the leader and onto his bumper. I tried the high line and was almost side by side entering three. The car slid the front end and I fell back in line. The next time I drove it in a little harder to get the car turned a little better and pulled even just as the hand signaling 5 to go was displayed to the field. We went into turn 1 side by side and I was able to pull ahead coming off turn 2. Once in the lead I began counting down the laps to myself and watching the approaching lapped traffic. As the white flag waved I lapped a car on the high side and was about 3 cars away from the tail of the field. Caught the tail as the checkered waved. However things got interesting after the checkered as I went high going into turn 1 too high. A car spun and I had nowhere to go. WHAM. Slammed into the spun car with the right side as three other cars spun and joined the fracas. It gave me a flat and bent a few suspension parts in the rear. But the race was over and everyone was ok, no one injured. Once post-race tech was over, the crew changed the tire and we headed off to the pits with trophy in hand. Was able to present the trophy to our newest sponsor (Atlas Towing & Recovery) and his family.

Thanks, Mom, Dad, Blake, Carly, Skip, Dan and Tracy for their help and support at the track on Saturday. We survived the heat!!

WINNEMUCCA REGIONAL RACEWAY, July 14, 2006

Race #8 in the 11 race schedule at Winnemucca Regional Raceway found temperatures approaching if not over 100 degrees. Warm anyway, but warm for up there. Was surprised to see regional direction Paul Vetter in attendance and was even more surprised when he presented me with a trophy at the driver's meeting. The trophy was sent from the home office of IMCA and it commemorated my 100th feature win which occurred at WRR on June 2. (Photo on the front page) A little embarrassing to happen in front of everyone, but very nice to be acknowledged. Lined up 3rd in the heat race and got into 2nd pretty quickly. Was battling for the lead when the car picked up a push and I slipped back to 4th. Fell even further behind the three leaders until I changed my line and caught back up. Slipped into 3rd, then 2nd and was at the door of the leader as the checkered flag waved. The invert placed me 9th in the line up for the feature. The track was in decent shape for the feature and I was able to get a great start and was battling for 5th very early in the action. Then entering turn 3 on the inside I saw a lot of moisture on the track and boy did it take me for a ride. Took every bit of experience I had in these cars to get the thing under control and headed back in a forward direction. The bad news was that 3 cars had slipped back by me and I was mired back in the 8th spot. A few laps later the yellow waved and officials tightened a loose fuel cap on the leader. Back to green and I was able to get back in a groove that worked for the car and moved up back up to the 5th spot. Had just slipped inside for the 4th spot when the caution waved putting me back to the 5th position. On this restart the door opened briefly and the 4th place car drove through it. I tried to follow and it closed right in front of me. Two laps later the car that restarted in front of me was leading as the previous leader left the track with a flat right rear. I got into the third spot and battled for a good 8 or 9 laps with the 2nd place car for that position. We were side by side a couple of times but he was able to drive by me using the outside groove's momentum. Finally I got a great run off turn 4 and drove in hard on the inside going into turn 1. Into 2nd position. Glanced up to see the leader exiting turn 4 as I exited turn 2! Yikes I was 1/2 a lap down. It would only get worse as I encountered a group of 5 cars battling for their spot as I tried to lap them. Time was wasting and as the laps wore down I was able to drive through the group of lapped cars but it was only good enough for 2nd on this day. Good solid run for the team and the front end fix was great. Couldn't even tell the car was tore up the previous race.

Thanks Dad, Skip, Dan, and Tracy for their help at the track.

SUMMIT RACEWAY, July 9, 2006

"That's racin'", "You can't win 'em all," "Gotta take the good with the bad," or thrown in any other of those catchy phrases, it still stinks when things go like they did on Saturday night. After winning the heat race by about 1/2 a lap, I was super excited to be out there for the feature. Kept my nose clean early, only to have the field get heavily on the brakes in front of me coming out of turn 4. I got on the binders a little too hard, the car crossed up on me and spun back around to the left heading driver's side first into the front straight wall. Shortly after coming to a rest against the wall another car got into the front of me and ran over the RF tire. The impact twisted the lower control arm, broke the shock, flattened the tire, and broke the upper a-arm in half. After several laps in the pits, I went back out without a shock on the RF and with about 5 or 6 inches of tow out. Rejoined the dwindling field as the 11th car in the field. The car was a tremendous handful but after a few laps I found a way to get it around the track without using much steering wheel and instead using the gas and the brakes to steer the car. A couple of yellows later I was the 3rd car in line behind the lead duo. Over the final 1/2 of the race I managed to keep my mangled heap in that third spot and by races end wound up being scored in the 8th spot. I was throwing away an 11th place finish, so it was a slight improvement. Not what we had hoped, but an improvement just the same.

Although it wasn't the best we've ever gotten along, I do thank Mom, Dad, Blake, Skip, Tracy, Carly and Tayra for their help and support this weekend.

BATTLE MOUNTAIN RACEWAY, July 2, 2006

A late night of action and back up early on Sunday as the racing would begin at 2:00. Another warm day greeted us in the pits as well as 19 other competitors. The 20 car field was divided into 3 heats and I wound up in heat two starting 7th of 7. Again, the track was watered before each race and it led to some slippery conditions. The first two starts were called back as cars went spinning wildly off the top of the track. The third green was the charm and I raced into the 6th spot. Moved into 5th but was really going nowhere. Was a little leery of the outside as it was slick at the start but I went in high on the next car and found it to be much better. In fact it was almost too good. The car pushed. The next lap I went in harder and made the pass on the outside. By 1/2 way I was into the third spot with the leaders dueling about 10 car lengths ahead. Managed to catch them just as the 2nd place car raced by the leader on the outside. I too moved to the outside and was able to take 2nd right before the checkered waved. The 12 car inversion found me in that 12th spot for the feature. At the green the track was dry and incredibly slick. Dusty as well. With the tough conditions however, the field put on one of the most exciting first few laps that I've been in for quite some time. Cars were two and three wide through the pack for many laps at the start of the feature. In fact there were so many cars in different grooves, there really wasn't anywhere to go. While I wasn't moving up at all, I couldn't be too disappointed as the road was simply blocked by cars running everywhere, it was great. I finally found an opening on the high side and moved from 8th to 5th. Once in 5th I began working the low line and high side together. I was 4th by 1/2 way and the higher line had gone away for my car. I was stuck chugging the bottom for the remainder of the race. Slipped inside for third just before another caution waved and the signal was given that the scheduled 40 lapper was cut down and only 10 laps remained. The lack of another groove and the close confines of the 1/4 mile made for some tight racing and a few bumps and taps. Was close to pulling off the pass for 2nd a couple of times but just couldn't pull it off. Wound up finishing in the 3rd spot for the day. Not too bad, but I did improved one spot as the 2nd place car didn't report to the claim area and was DQ'd from the event. That moved me up to the 2nd spot, another great finish!!

Thanks again to Mom, Dad, Blake, Skip, Dan, and Carly for their help and support this weekend. Great racing to everyone as well. Lots of fun.

BATTLE MOUNTAIN RACEWAY, July 1, 2006

Headed to the track around 4:00 to prepare for the 2nd night of the three race weekend. Another 21 car field greeted us, fun! Unloaded the car, did the usual maintenance and made a couple of chassis changes to try and improve on our Friday night performance. Knowing the track was going to be just as dry as the previous night's track, I was looking for more bite. While working on the car, Atlas Towing & Recovery from Battle Mountain came over to chat and added their name to our list of 2006 sponsors. They will provide some much needed support to the team while in Battle Mountain this season. THANK YOU, THANK YOU!! Lined up in row 2 for the heat race and the track was watered before we headed out. Slick. Fell back early but by 1/2 way I had worked up to the head of the field and went on to the heat win. The car felt pretty darn good. The 30 lap feature was going to be intense with the high car count and the dry conditions. Passing would be tough on the one groove track. Might have to make another groove work. Lined up 8th for the feature and settled into the 6th spot early as a few early tangles had me a little cautious. Early on I went in on the high side of a couple of cars and found that I could make my car work pretty well. After a couple of laps I found an even better way to get around the top side and the car was on the move. Worked up to 4th and was working on third high when the yellow waved. The racing was tight as the top 4 were really close together. The leader was low, 2nd was high, third was low and I (in 4th) was high. At times I could get a great run on third but would be slowed by the 2nd place car working on the leader. After about 10 or so laps of door to door, wheel to wheel racing I had managed to eek into the third spot. With 2nd working the high line, the line I was working, I was forced to go low. My car wasn't as good low but I had to deal with it. Laps were winding down so time was becoming an issue. Slowly but surely I was able to pull side by side with 2nd place going into turn 3, a wheel to wheel battle ensued coming off turn 4 and I was able to slip by. From there I set my sights on the leader who was running the extreme bottom, allowing me to go back to the groove I was running previously. I caught the leader going into turn 1 and put it in on the outside. Door to door off turn 2 and the car shot out of that outside groove and into the lead. From there I was able to stretch it out by the time the flagman gave us the handful of fingers signaling 5 to go. Took the white flag and headed off turn 2 with some room to spare........YELLOW! Lead negated and a green-white-checkered finish. YUCK! Nothing worse than giving the field another shot at you. Held my breath going into turn 3 for the restart and hoped I had enough to hold on. Through one and two, no pressure, three and four, no pressure. White flag. Into turn 3, around 4 and down the front stretch to the feature win. WOO HOO!

Thanks Mom, Dad, Blake, Dan (&family) and Carly for their help and support today!